Founder's Blog
}}| } | }} }| * } } }| } | }} | }} |} Hi all, my name is Geoffrey Rucker, currently using the screen name GeoFruck for my most recent round of internet activity and gaming. I want to write this in order to chronicle what led me to making this wiki, the things I have learned along the way, and the on-going saga. From August of 2011 to October of 2012 is was unemployed, and like a lot of people, had an unscheduled hiatus from the world. During this period, I had a lot of time to reflect on my life and try to learn what I could from a more objective viewpoint. I did learn quite a few things about myself, but most importantly was where my passion lies. Video games. I've played all types of games such as D&D style RPGs, CCGs (actually just the first and best Magic: The Gathering), chess and other standard fare board games, and of course, video games. However, video games do hold a special place in my heart, probably because they are still being reinvented and will probably continue to do so as technology keep chugging along. Something else that helps is that it is becoming far more accessible for non-programmers to actually develop a game. Something I have become very aware of is that this does not translate into games being "easy" to make and put out. There is a lot that goes into making a game, especially as only one person. When I was moving back home to Georgia, from Colorado, I had more time to think. During this time, I developed a plan of attack for making my dreams come true. Now, I don't know how to program, so I decided to find out how feasible this idea was. I shortly discovered that "game development" is actually somewhat of an ambiguous term. A lot of programmers (or coders, still haven't been able to figure out which term is more accurate), will call themselves game developers, in which case they are referring to themselves as basically being the entire "team" involved in the game development process. In an established development company, there are a number of members, with specific disciplines, that comprise the entire development team. The actual disciplines specific to programmers will most likely include at least the following: *Actual programming. This is a person or team that will either construct the framework of the game from scratch, build their own game engine depending on the framework that the specific game requires, or use an existing engine to build the framework, and have the knowledge to re-write the engine as needed. *Graphic design, art, and animation. This is another person or team that will construct the visual aspects of the game, an art form in and of itself. *Game design, writers, and directors. This is a person or team that will build the overall construct of the game, including the storyline, progression, mechanics, and all specific game elements included in the game. This part of development can be done on a general level or an extremely detailed level, depending on the overall structure of the development team. *Production. This is a person or group of people that are in charge of the game development process in a broad sense. The term producer, in relation to the video game development process, seems to still be in an evolutionary phase, as it will encompass a large, or very specific, number of roles, depending on the needs of the company employing the producer or production team. It's probably best if you read about this here. *Audio. This is a fairly straight-forward role, similar to the graphics description listed previously. An easy to underestimate, yet indispensable part of the team. Just think about how the theme songs and sound-bites included in a game affect your experience. *Quality Assurance. Yet another easily interpreted role required for the development of a good game. It's not as easy as play-testing and reporting what features are good and what needs improvement. This is a science in itself, which has specific reporting software packages dedicated to it, and is held to a high standard in at least some development companies. *Business and Legal. The legal aspect of this is self explanatory, and the business part could be a few different things. More than likely, the business part will comprise of standard business needs, such as accounting, payroll, HR, etc., and don't forget about the "Business Development" titles, which are the latest stripes to be donned by marketing people. After I learned this, I was somewhat intrigued by the game design aspect of the development process. This role technically does not require any programming knowledge, and has goals that I believe to be achievable by the average gamer. Granted it helps to have some knowledge of what programmers can accomplish, but in my mind, that may also be limiting in it's own right. What I mean by that is if you know how to program, as a designer, how likely would you be to challenge and push the programming team? If you think you know what is possible in current programming norms, wouldn't that help influence what limitations you place on your game concept? Well, since I am not a programmer, I am going to roll with the possibility that it may be an advantage for me. That just makes me feel better ;) In any case, after learning that there is something I can do, I started to investigate what a game designer does. The thing that popped up all over the place is the "Game Design Document" (fade echo). This is a document that outlines the kind of game it will be, how it will progress, goal structure, characters in the game, classes, skills, etcetera, ad nauseum. Since I am not working with any programmers, at the moment, I decided that a good all encompassing thought for me would be: write the game design document to include as many specifics as possible, to the point where I could hand it to a programmer, and they would be able to create the game without needing to even speak with me. Now, this is probably not possible, to get the document to that level of specification, but I decided that is still a good goal to aim for. To be continued....